The UK will assist the International Criminal Court (ICC) in hunting down suspected Russian war criminals, the deputy prime minister has said. Dominic Raab – who has a background in prosecuting war criminals – told the Daily Telegraph that Britain could house Russian commanders suspected of atrocities in its prisons – in addition to proving a safe haven for witnesses who testified against them.
The senior minister outlined the UK’s role in the International Criminal Court’s investigation in the wake of Boris Johnson’s damning remarks about Vladimir Putin. Mr Raab added that the UK was privy to vital information secured during previous war crime investigations that could help secure convictions.
It comes after the UK explicitly accused Mr Putin of war crimes for the first time, with Downing Street claiming “horrific acts” were occurring on an almost hourly basis as population centres are targeted. While the deputy PM said he and the Foreign Secretary were still in the process of hashing out the details of Britain’s precise role in the ICC’s investigation, he promised that “few countries around the world” had the UK’s “lead information” which would likely prove “absolutely critical”.
